Baiser de la Morte
by MageKalize
Summary: Since Edward and Bella's is such an isolated case, no one saw this coming. Not until it's too late and now Bella has no idea that her wish is coming true earlier and faster than she or anyone else had anticipated.


**Title:** Baiser de la Morte (Part 1)  
**Rating: **T (overall just to be sure, if anything changes this will reflect)  
**Genre:** Romance/(a little bit of )Angst  
**Characters/Pairings:** ExB  
**Short summary:** Since Edward and Bella's is such an isolated case, no one saw this coming. Not until it's too late and now Bella has no idea that her wish is coming true earlier and faster than she or anyone else had anticipated.  
**Any warnings:** None  
**Disclaimer:** _The content of this and all of my stories are purely fiction. I am not or have I ever been affiliated with any part of the characters/cast of Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse or Breaking dawn or anyone affiliated with them. I claim no rights to any part of the characters/cast of Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse or Breaking dawn or any other real people (if any) mentioned in this story. If any event depicted in any of the stories have any kind of resemblance to actual events they are a coincidence and are not written intentfully._  
**A.N.:** So this is my first Twilight. The idea stuck and grew in some dark corner of my mind until it couldn't be ignored any longer. "Baiser. . ." is a working title because I didn't really ever intend to write this. When it came to it I was at a complete loss as to what to name it so for the time being the title is what it is.

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I first noticed my lack of hunger when I managed to mangle the perfect plate full of lasagna that Esme had cooked up for me without even taking a bite. It could have been explained by the fact that I had just recently eaten, but I hadn't. I hadn't had lunch or even breakfast and still there was no hunger.

Esme was looking worriedly at the plate holding the poor remains of my untouched lasagna and glancing back at me. She must have thought something to Edward because one minute Esme and I were in the kitchen alone with a small freshly mangled dish of lasagna and the next Edward was sitting in the stool right by my side, hands gently turning my body to face his and ghosting over my features. His eyes looking me over with a fine toothed comb.

"What is it Esme? Bella are you alright?" A perturbed looked crossed his face before turning to face me. Esme must have told Edward something else to have him look at me that way.

"Can I be in on this conversation too?" I might have sounded slightly annoyed, but not enough to register with Esme and Edward whose facial expressions didn't even flinch.

"Carlisle" Edward hardly raised his voice and Carlisle was by our side looking mildly curious. His patient eyes took in the scene and the untouched lasagna before me and glanced at Edward.

Now I was becoming irritated. Not being hungry was hardly a cause for worry, but it seemed as though Edward thought it was.

"OK, can I please be let in on whatever this silent conversation is about? If this is about me not being hungry I think this concern is completely ridiculous. I'm just not hungry at this moment it's not a national emergency." My eyes ping-ponged from Edward to Carlisle to Esme and back again.

"When was the last time you ate Bella?" This came from Carlisle. So this _was _about my lack of appetite. I let out a sigh. It really wanted to be a huff, but Carlisle deserved a little more respect so a sigh-bordering-on-a-huff it was.

"I don't know, I guess some time yesterday maybe? Why does it matter? I'm just not hungry right now, why is it such a big deal?" Carlisle was going to answer when Edward spoke up.

"Bella, I know that at times I forget that you have to eat everyday more than once even, but I know I've been keeping track and you have hardly eaten anything in a week and a half. I spoke to Carlisle a little because I was worried, but you didn't display any of the normal symptoms so I wanted a second opinion." I was upset now by his pause in speech I could tell he knew it too. With my raised eyebrows, tilted head, lips pursed and crossed arms I might have given it away.

"Symptoms to what? And how come Carlisle gets to know about something that could be possibly wrong with me before I do?" Edward looked a little uncomfortable before taking the plunge and explaining to me what exactly he thought was 'wrong'.

"You haven't eaten today and you are right that is hardly any indication to throw red flags, but like I said, I have been tracking your meals. It is simply to make sure that I don't keep you from them and the results have me worried and a little baffled." Here he paused to see how I was taking it all. So far so good since I hadn't moved an inch or even breathed differently since he started talking.

"Bella, you just said that you 'don't know' and you 'guess' that yesterday was the last time you have eaten, but really it was actually almost two weeks since you've eaten more than one mouthful that you haven't immediately spit out. It's even a chore to get you to drink water to keep you hydrated and I don't believe you've even noticed if your comment was any indication." Edward still hadn't gotten to his theory, but his close tracking of my meals was a bit disturbing in two ways. That he was tracking what I ate at all meals was a little unsettling, and what was more unsettling was that I hadn't really noticed anything. Not the lack of appetite, the lack of thirst, or the fact that I'd been almost fighting Edward on drinking a glass of water registered at all in my mind. Now that he had pointed it out, I was expecting all the instances to come to the forefront of my mind in absolute clarity, but I couldn't remember. At most a foggy distant memory clawed its way to the top, but nothing more.

My lack of attention and lack of attention to that lack of attention (headache inducing thought that it was) was bothering me and a bit of my distress must have shown on my face because I heard Edward call Jasper in really quick while he continued with his explanation. A wave of calm overcame the room and I tried to not be influenced by it overly much if only to keep a hold of the mild aggravation I felt coming.

"Your sudden lack of appetite caused me to pause for a minute and research what could be causing it. You didn't seem bothered or concerned and you didn't hide the fact that you were not eating. You are not on any kind of diet that you have or have not made me aware of and neither are you counting calories. You're still healthy which is the most boggling part of it all. If you have hardly eaten anything in almost two weeks you should be weak and if not skeletal then at least a bit thinner, not healthy and normal." Edward paused for a minute directing a very concerned stare my way. Without thinking about it he was dazzling me and I had to break the stare before I did something dumb.

I glanced quickly at the floor then at Esme and Carlisle before voicing my suspicion.

"So you thought that because I stopped eating I must be what? Anorexic? I know I don't have the greatest self esteem, especially with Rosalie, Alice and you, Esme, but come on!"

"We would never think that, Bella dear, but two weeks without food and hardly any water without you even noticing is a bit of an anomaly." Esme looked a little bit stressed and I felt a bit bad about the sudden accusatory tone I had used.

"If it's not anorexia and you've just stated it is not then why have you not been eating lately? More importantly is why haven't you even noticed it?" Carlisle hesitated before continuing. "Bella I would really like to run some tests on you, it doesn't have to be me if you don't feel comfortable about it, but it would make us all feel better knowing that someone is making sure you are doing well." Everyone in the room and even those outside it were holding their breath, literally, waiting to hear what I would decide.

The wait was palpable and I knew that even though vampires could hear for miles away and that the Cullen's tried to not listen in when they are not wanted it was a hardship especially when it came to me, their 'pet human'. Rosalie would sneer the nick name, Emmett would say it for amusement purposes, Alice would say it lovingly and the rest would get anywhere from mildly irritated to fully upset. Jasper at the lower end and Edward at the top with Esme and Carlisle in between.

I didn't know what to think really. It was upsetting that such a thing was happening and I wanted it to stop, but I didn't know what kind of tests had to be run and Carlisle was like a second dad to me. It was also a bit distressing that I didn't feel more inclined to fix this problem so that I could eat even after finding out that I didn't find the lasagna appetizing and that something had to be wrong with me if that was the case.

I took a deep breath at which point I found that I had not been breathing since Carlisle had asked to test me. Edward once again rushed, as much as anyone can rush from a foot away, towards me startled at the fact that I hadn't taken a breath and his lack of attention to it.

"Bella! Breathe please. How long were you holding your breath?" I seriously couldn't be sure. Maybe since Carlisle had proposed testing which was maybe four, maybe five minutes ago? When I realized it seemed that the vampires in front of me did too and everyone else rushed in from around the house and started talking at once.

"It's been almost five minutes!"

"How could that be possible?"

"There was no blood rushing and her heart was steady!"

"Freaky Bella!"

"Honey, are you ok?"

"Don't panic, she seems to be fine right now"

Then the comments became odd and that's when I knew Edward was answering unvoiced questions.

"I know it's going to have to be you."

"No, it has to be something else."

"We would have seen something sooner."

"Well no, obviously she's still human"

"Possible, but unlikely you saw her initial reaction to the bite"

Edward froze all of the sudden which caused everyone else to stop and stare.

"Edward?" Carlisle looked a bit worried and uncertain. It must have been him that Edward had been mentally conversing with.

"Mouth" was all Edward got out before he was a couple of inches from my face, hands holding my face steady looking straight at him. His eyes studied my eyes, my face and by the tilt of his head I figured my heart beat as well.

"Bella, it's going to have to be Carlisle to check you over and run tests because I don't think this is a human illness." He whispered but I could hear him because of his close proximity. My heart skipped a beat. If it wasn't a human illness than what other was there? I was under the impression that vampires didn't get ill.

"I thought vampires couldn't get sick." My voice broke at one point, but I ignored it. He looked indecisive, as if the choice was too painful for him.

"We don't get sick." Was Edward's simple answer that did not clear anything up for me. "This is going to take some research, but once we get a few things straight I'll let you know what we think might be going on." I was going to object vehemently since this was my body that was going to undergo god knows what kind of tests or how many and I was going to have to wait for _research_!

At the exact moment that I opened my mouth Alice let out a gasp and nearly fell over, but Jasper was there to catch her. She was convulsing, eyes out of focus, hands twitching every few seconds. Then Edward's hands on my face tightened just a fraction and became even more stone like. They were hard and cold and now completely immovable. His eyes had darkened when he caught the edge of Alice's vision, but I wasn't sure what emotion he was conveying. It was an intense, unfocused stare and it scared me a little when he didn't move for more than a minute. Alice was already alert and putting herself together once again, but Edward remained still.

"Edward?" That seemed to snap him out of it. His eyes went straight to Alice.

"How soon?" His voice was strained, but oddly defeated.

"It's picking up pace. I'm assuming no more than a month if that." She was restraining herself. I didn't know in what though. Edward let out a low growl. "It's going to happen at least there are no painful side effects!"

"Please let me know what's going on." I whispered. It seems that everyone had forgotten I was present because there was a collective jerk as I spoke. I could maybe take a wild guess, but I didn't want to go crazy and embarrass myself in front of everyone so I went the underhand route, begging.

"Please? I know you want to research, but if Alice has seen something that will only prove what you already suspect true, then why can't you let me know what is going on with me?"

"Edward, Alice? Can you please share what it is that you have seen?"

"Carlisle-"

"Edward if Bella is telling the truth which I suspect is right due to your hesitating then telling us all what is going on would be best and we can move on from there."

"Maybe we should move the discussion to the living room and out of the kitchen" Esme was shooing everyone out of the kitchen with her bringing up the rear. She took the pan of lasagna that had one perfectly cut out square and looked at it forlornly. She was moving towards the trash can with a saddened sigh.

"Esme? Don't throw it away. You spent time cooking it and I'm sure Charlie will more than love it. You are a way better cook that I am, I'm sure he'll be asking for your lasagna over mine as soon as he tastes it. Just set it aside and I'll pack it up." I walked up to her and gave her a hug.

"Thank you for the food and all the hard work Esme, I really appreciate it" Her arms enclosed me for a minute longer than was strictly necessary, but I didn't complain. It felt nice to receive a hug from another female figure since Rene was not available to me.

"You are very welcome Bella. It was a pleasure; I always loved to cook, but obviously never had a need for it until you. Don't worry I'll wrap it up for you to take. Come on everyone is now in the living room waiting for us." She covered the pan and set it aside to cool while we talked in the living room.

_'Here goes nothing'_ I thought and followed Esme


End file.
